


Jack and Jill

by xszsx



Series: Harvest Moon: Generations [2]
Category: Harvest Moon
Genre: Death, Eventual Romance, F/M, Marriage, Pregnancy, Prequel, Shy Bookworm, Sick Character, Twins, farming
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-12-30
Updated: 2013-12-30
Packaged: 2018-03-09 16:09:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,706
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3256160
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xszsx/pseuds/xszsx
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The sickly Dia is a rich, shy girl who spends most of her time indoors and reading. When the new farmer Jack arrives into Leaf Valley, she'll start becoming a little more outgoing. But her sickness won't stop now that she's found happiness. A prequel to my other work.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Dia was born sick. She hated it, but she hated her parents even more for sending her away to the countryside after their divorce. She was always a bossy child, getting everything she wanted. It wasn't her fault that she was coddled. Still, that bossiness got better when she met the gentle Gina and her grandmother Martha. She had lived with them for most of her life, and although it was difficult at first, her spirit grew gentler as the years without her parents' negligence grew longer.

Dia became quite shy, trying to avoid being the awful brat she had once been, and by being so restrained, she didn't have many friends. Without Gina there to help, she probably wouldn't have any. So, Dia spent most of her time reading books in her villa, usually trying to get over some ailment because of her condition-a mild case of primary immunodeficiency. She could blame her mother for the hereditary condition, but she preferred not to blame her parents for more than the ignorance their busy lives had forced upon them. She didn't want to blame them at all, but she couldn't help it. She had tried to be understanding of their circumstances, but she couldn't help but be resentful.

Dia was in the café the first day of spring, reading a book, as usual, the downward position of her head making her sniffles worse than they originally were. She tried to lean her head back and drain her nose, but it didn't really work. So, she just took a tissue and put it against her nose, continuing to read. The door opened abruptly, a stranger barging in.

He introduced himself eagerly to everybody, but Dia just went back to reading, uninterested in what seemed an exhausting character, sniffling as loud as ever. Soon, she saw the stranger walk up to her in her peripheral vision, and she looked up at him.

"Are you okay?" he asked gently. Dia hesitated, then nodded slowly.

"Is it a sad book, or are you just a little sick?" he asked her, eyebrow raised. Dia looked down at her book, then back up at him.

"It's not a sad book. I just have the sniffles," she said.

"Oh, that's good. I don't know if you heard, but my name's Jack. I'm the new farmer here," he said, holding his hand out to Dia. Dia couldn't help smile at the coincidence. The book in her hands was an adaptation of the story called "Jack and Jill."

"I'm Dia," she said, and Jack flashed a charming smiled.

"It's very nice to meet you, Dia," he said sincerely. Dia blushed a little, chuckling nervously.

"Talk to you later, Dia!" he said, running out of the café. Dia blinked, and went back to her book, her face and neck hot. How embarrassing.

Dia saw a lot of Jack after that. He always brought her gifts, much to her flattery, and would talk about the weirdest things sometimes. But, she saw that he did this with many others. Almost everyone in the town received the same treatment that she did. So, she tried to suppress the feelings of being special or interesting or any other emotions. The weird thing was, though, that Dia didn't mind the rambling she often would have found annoying otherwise. Usually she would, feeling that it was a waste of precious reading time, but Jack was different. There was just something about his voice, she supposed.

What she enjoyed most was the little things that Jack did. Once, when they were on a walk, she mentioned how blueberries were one of her favorite fruits. After that day, Jack would only bring her blueberries as gifts. It was a small gesture, but it still made Dia's heart skip and stomach clench in a weird way that made her feel sick. Maybe she needed to tell her doctor. Perhaps she caught yet another sickness, one she had no recollection of having before.

She told her doctor, and he said that nothing was wrong. She probably just had a little crush. Dia had blanched at the idea, and supposed that perhaps that was it, or perhaps she just enjoyed being given so much attention.

One day, in the summer, little Tim found a treasure map in her house. How he found it was beyond her, but she found herself very interested nonetheless—especially when Jack said he was interested, too. Believing that the treasure was hidden in the Sacred Land of the valley, Dia went to investigate. She found it, and brought Jack back along with her. When she was looking at the scenery, surprised by the beauty she had missed from the outdoors many times before, Dia slipped. Jack had quickly caught her, her heart racing from many different factors. After that, Dia was even more confused than before about her nausea and erratic heartbeat. It made her uncomfortable, and quite honestly, she didn't like it.

Dia became even more shy around Jack. She would always hide behind her books whenever he came to visit, feigning absolute concentration on them, and yet not being able to read more than a sentence. Jack was friends with almost everyone, even the goons trying to destroy the valley! How could Jack possibly waste his time with her? He was very popular with the ladies (and some men), so why would he be so cruel as to make her feel special?

Trying to feel that fleeting moment of awe for the outdoors once more, Dia decided to sit under a tree in her yard one day, reading a sequel to the "Jack and Jill" adaptation. She had snoozed off, though, lulled by the quiet of the garden. Jack had found her lying there, immediately concerned and rushing to her side. Dia awoke to the slightly panicked Jack, calming him down immediately. Jack sat next to her, silent for a moment. Then he spoke up.

"Hey... why have you been ignoring me?" he asked her, trying to hide his hurt. Dia just stared at him, not knowing how to respond.

"Do I annoy you? Is that it? I know I can ramble a lot, and get a little weird sometimes. Augh, that's it, isn't it? I'm just too annoying and I just. . ." Jack ran a hand through his messy hair, with Dia just sitting there, looking at him and trying to figure out what to say. This was the first time she had seen him so nervous and full of . . . self-doubt. Just like her. She put a hand on his mouth, her heart racing.

"It's not that I don't like you. I just thought you had better things to do," she said softly, looking to the side a little. Jack froze, gazing at her with the full force of his warm brown eyes. Dia realized where she was touching, and blushed profusely, pulling her hand back and looking down at the book in her lap.

"S-sorry. . ." she mumbled, still looking to the ground. Jack remained silent, and Dia looked back up to see him just staring at her.

"What?" she asked. Jack smiled at her.

"Nothing," he said. Then he reached over and hugged Dia for the first time.

Dia couldn't stop blushing, her heart racing, and she hated it. She really hated feeling this sick. Then, Jack let go and got up.

"I'm glad you said that I wasn't bothersome, though I know I am pretty annoying sometimes. And I really don't have better things to do, 'cause nothing can top hanging with you," he smiled, winking playfully, and Dia scoffed. They stayed where they were for a few seconds, just staring at each other, and Dia raised an eyebrow.

"What?" she asked. Jack knelt down next to her, bringing his eyes level to hers.

"You have really pretty eyes, you know?" he said.

"Okay," Dia laughed a little. She hated how nervous he was making her feel, yet again. She wished he would just leave, but she also couldn't bear the thought of it.

Jack took her hand, and slowly leaned towards her. Dia froze. Her heart had never worked so hard in her life, pumping all the blood it could manage as quickly as possible. She felt like she was going to throw up. She couldn't feel anything. Her mind was completely numb. Everything moved too quickly, and she didn't even realize that Jack had kissed her on the lips until she saw him pull away. She jumped up, her eyes wide, and she put her hand over her mouth. She immediately ran back into her house. She prayed Jack wouldn't follow her, and locked her bedroom door behind her, her body shaking.

She stayed in there for a week, her food brought to her. She had her own bathroom and plenty of books, so she was just fine. Just fine, she kept telling herself. Jack had tried to visit every day, but Dia told Gina that she was sick and didn't want to see anyone. But, with all the stress she was enduring, her body actually became weaker and she did get sick—it was terrible. She had a scorching fever with a stuffy nose and a pounding headache. She could barely move and had the scratchiest throat in the world. Gina and Martha took care of her, but she still couldn't get over the nasty cold.

One day, Jack forced his way into her bedroom. He wasn't his normal self. He was very quiet and sad-looking, and just sat by Dia's bed, watching over her. But, since he had many duties, he couldn't stay very long. So, he just gave her his little box of blueberries, and left. He still brought her blueberries every day that she was sick. She never really noticed him there, since she was either in a lot of pain or sleeping. But, one day, she got much better.

And there he was.


	2. Chapter 2

Dia was shocked, and immediately hid under the covers, feeling like she wanted to melt. Jack touched where she was covering her face.

"Dia?" he croaked. He sounded terrible, and she instantly looked at him. He looked tired, stressed, and just downright awful. She forgot her concern over her embarrassing move and sat right up, even though it gave her a head rush. She just stared at him.

Jack got up, setting down his blueberries on her bedside table.

"I hope you feel better, Dia. I have to go take care of my animals and stuff, though," he said. He hesitated, then leaned down to kiss her forehead quickly. After that, he left the room. Dia blushed, as usual, and looked over at the blueberries. She called for Gina.

"I'm feeling better now," she said, and Gina smiled.

"I'm so glad to hear that," Gina replied, and looked over at the blueberries.

"Oh! Another box," Gina giggled, and took the box.

"I'll go ahead and get this one out of your way," she said, heading towards the door. Dia was confused.

"He's been bringing them still?" Dia asked. Gina looked back and nodded.

"Yep, Jack has been visiting you every day, and he always brought you a little box of blueberries. But, since you haven't been eating them, there are quite a lot. I think we'll have to make a pie out of them," she chuckled, and went out the doorway. Dia's face and neck got hot, but she knew she was no longer very sick. She lay back down, and couldn't stop thinking of Jack.

The next day, she was practically recovered. All she had was some coughing and a slight head-ache, but she would live. Or at least she thought. When she saw Jack, she felt like she would die from embarrassment. She couldn't stop thinking about what she did and what he did and—oh she was going to have a heart attack. He was just coming into her room when she was sitting up in her bed.

"Hi," she squeaked. He smiled at her, and pulled up a chair next to her bed.

"Hey," he replied, and he set down the blueberries next to her bedside table.

"Thank you so much for all the blueberries. You shouldn't have, since I wasn't even conscious most of the time," Dia said, avoiding eye contact with Jack.

"You said you like blueberries, so no matter what, no matter how ridiculous the circumstance, I'll bring you you're silly little blueberries," he replied, laughing a little, and Dia sneaked a glance at his smiling face. He was looking much better than yesterday, but he still looked extremely tired. Dia smiled shyly at him. They just sat there in silence for a while, and Dia didn't think she could handle much more. She gulped, praying for something to happen.

"Dia," Jack said, and she jumped a little at the break of silence.

"Yes?" she asked, nervousness not even the right word covering all the emotions she felt right now.

"I love you," he said, blushing madly. Dia froze, her breath coming up short.

"W-w-what?" Dia stuttered, her body shaking.

"I love you, Dia, and I want to be with you. . . forever. I know it sounds pretty cheesy and all, and that I can get pretty annoying, but I promise I'll bring you blueberries every day for the rest of your life. . ." he added, smiling. Dia was breathless.

"Now that's a little too ridiculous," she said, and Jack's face flashed with hurt.

"What?" he said, his voice breaking a little.

"Blueberries every day . . . at least make it once a month. I'll end up not even enjoying blueberries anymore," Dia said, looking away slightly. She kept doing that for some reason, not being able to face the imminent change. Jack chuckled, his relief obvious.

"I. . ." Dia started, looking Jack straight in the eyes. She was blushing intensely.

"I, um. . . I. . . love. . . you . . . too. . . I guess," she whispered, but it still made Jack smile widely. He then took her face and quickly leaned in to kiss her full-on. Shocked, Dia sat still, not doing anything. He pulled back, smile wide.

"Well then, I say we stop being so slow and get married tomorrow!" he said, jumping up.

"What?" Dia asked, shocked as she usually was with Jack. He chuckled.   
"I'm just kidding. Next week will be fine," he said, winking at her and getting up. He pulled her out of bed, holding her bridal style.

"W-w-what are you doing?" she asked, embarrassed and annoyed.

"Don't you know what this is called? It's bridal style. You do it after proposing, too, right?" he asked, chuckling. Dia shook her head violently.

"No, no, no, not at all. . ." her head felt light, and Jack kissed her again. She didn't know how much more kissing she could take before she fainted.

"Well, then, my bad," he said, not looking sorry at all. He set her back down in bed, and then took off to leave.

"We have a lot of planning to do!" he said, blowing her a kiss good-bye. Dia decided to take a nap, not believing what had just happened.


	3. Chapter 3

It had been only two years since they'd gotten married in a very big wedding, Jack being as popular as he was. Dia still hadn't gotten the hang of the married lifestyle, though, especially . . . the thing.

You know, that whole cooking thing. Dia failed miserably at trying to make her husband food, but thankfully, he wasn't half bad—otherwise, they would starve. She lived with Jack at his home on the ranch, but she still visited Gina and Martha quite a lot, and even still hung out in her bedroom there. Jack was still as busy as ever, even after saving Leaf Valley, so not much had really changed.

But everything was about to.

Dia had thrown up for what had been the fourth morning in a row. She had also missed her period. It didn't take long for her to put two and two together. She immediately told Jack, and he was delighted. She was happy to have a child, she supposed, but had read plenty of books describing the . . . "joys" of being pregnant. When she got into her third month, they told everyone about their new addition.

They soon found out from the doctor that it would be new additions. Dia was having twins! Of course, the uncomfortable meter quadrupled, and Dia had to be even more careful with her health. Jack and Dia took all precautions they could think of. So far, they had avoided trouble.

Except for Dia's wild blueberry frenzy. There weren't enough blueberries in the world for pregnant Dia's crazy cravings. Jack had practically gone bankrupt after buying all the blueberries he wasn't able to forage.

By the end of the second trimester, problems really started to happen. Dia had caught a cold somehow, and was especially weak. Because of this, she was really stressed, which only made things worse. But all would be well soon, since the babies were only a few months away.

Those few months suddenly became a lie. Only a few days later Dia was in labor, keeping with twins' notorious reputation of coming early. But this was much too early. Dia had gone unconscious when she went into labor, and she was at Gina and Martha's house in the middle of the day. Jack was called over immediately, and he stayed by Dia's side while they waited for the doctor to arrive.

The doctor wasn't getting there fast enough. So, Martha and Gina helped with the delivery. They got one baby out, a boy, but couldn't get the other baby. They would need a C-Section, but no one there was a doctor. After a few minutes, the doctor finally got there. The ladies explained what happened, and the doctor immediately jumped into surgery. The risks were high, not being in a proper hospital operating room, but there wasn't much choice.

Thankfully, the baby girl was successfully removed, and Dia had survived the surgery. The joyful Jack went to see his wife and daughter. Gina, Martha, and the new baby boy in tow. Dia lovingly looked upon her children, holding her daughter with all the strength she had, and asked Jack what he wanted to name them. Jack asked her the same thing. Dia thought for a second, though she was very tired, and told him what she thought were good names.

"Jack. . . and. . . Jill. . ." Dia struggled to speak through her weakness, but still managed a laugh. She was still sick. It was surprising she was even awake. Jack smiled and Dia smiled back.

"But my name's Jack," he said. Dia laughed.

"No it's not, Toy," she said, calling him by his dreaded given name. He groaned, and rolled his eyes.

"Whatever," he said smiling. He leaned down to kiss her, and touched his baby girl's head.

"Jill, huh. . ." he pondered aloud. Gina came over with their son, showing him to his mother. They were both unnaturally silent, but they were visibly breathing. The girl, Jill, kept squirming and making some noises on occasion, but other than that there wasn't much.

"I love you. . ." Jack mumbled to his family, and Dia looked at him.

"I. . . love. . . you. . ." she said, looking at everyone.

"I'm. . . terri. . . terribly. . . tired. . .though. . ." she said, her eyes drooping.

"Please. . . take. . . the b-" she coughed "the baby," she finished, her arms shaking from the strain. Jack hastily took the baby from her arms.

"You did good, Dia. Rest nice and easy now," he said, and Dia nodded, already starting to drift off. But, before she could totally go under, she mumbled a few last things.

"Thank. . . you. . ."

They all left the room, and went to the living room where they all sat around, enjoying this precious moment.

The doctor upstairs yelped suddenly, though, and hastily called downstairs.

"Come quick, Dia, she's. . . she's too weak. . . I can't feel a pulse!"

Jack rushed upstairs, passing off Jill to Martha. He was in the bedroom not two seconds after the urgent call. He kept calling Dia's name, and the doctor quickly tried CPR, but couldn't get anything. They tried for a half an hour, but nothing was working.

Dia was gone.

Jack couldn't believe it. She wasn't breathing. What was he supposed to do? How had he gone from being the happiest man alive to the most desolate one? Why did this happen? Why? This wasn't supposed to happen.

He couldn't take it. He had collapsed in a heap on Dia's lifeless body, still a little warm with slowly dying blood cells. He cried silently, despair racking through him. He couldn't take it.

But he had to, of course, for their children. Dia's Children. His children. Theirs. He looked up to see that Gina and Martha were there with the newborns, all silent as ever. Jack panicked and checked for their signs of life. He breathed a sigh of relief at their visible health, and he took them all, including Gina and Martha, into a hug. He had to be strong for his kids. He couldn't stand it if he lost them, too.

He couldn't be strong when they took her away, though. Especially when they buried her. . . under the ground. . . for good.

He didn't become emotionless. He loved his children very much, and he wanted them to know love. But, he couldn't help but become overprotective of them. Especially with Jill, who possessed the same immunodeficiency her mother and her grandmother had had. He even sold a big chunk of his farm so that he could watch over her at Gina and Martha's house, a much better environment for Jill, according to her father.

"It's not surrounded by disease-ridden animals and crops full of dirt and germs." Those very things he used to love so much.

Even though he couldn't get over Dia, he still wanted to remember her. The good times and the bad. He even got her presents every month. Not every day, because that would be too ridiculous, as Dia had said. Still, he didn't care if he was wasting the blueberries. He didn't care how ridiculous it was to put them on her grave the first day of every month.


End file.
